A new scenario with fewer obligations and less bureaucracy will mark the definitive implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) from 2026 onwards. The European Union has reached a provisional agreement to simplify a key tool in its climate strategy, which will have implications across the entire EU.
This regulation seeks to ensure that carbon-intensive imported products, such as cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, electricity and hydrogen, meet standards similar to those required within the European market, thus preventing so-called ‘carbon leakage’. This occurs when, due to costs arising from climate policies, companies in certain industrial sectors relocate their production to other countries, or when imports from these countries replace equivalent products that are less intensive in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.
This new agreement introduces significant changes that ease the burden on importers, especially those with low volumes, and improves administrative efficiency for all types of shippers. Although this measure has yet to be formally adopted, it represents an important step towards the definitive implementation of the MAFC, scheduled for 1 January 2026.
Fewer obligations for small imports
The main change is that importers who transport less than 50 tonnes per year of products subject to the MAFC will not have to comply with the usual reporting obligations or emissions calculations. This exemption aims to facilitate regulatory compliance for smaller players without compromising the integrity of the system.
With this measure, the EU aims to prevent small and medium-sized enterprises from bearing disproportionate burdens by focusing controls on operators with the greatest climate impact. Thanks to this simplification, many smaller businesses will be able to continue operating more easily, without neglecting their environmental objectives. In addition, this flexibility is expected to promote a more inclusive transition to sustainable business practices.
More efficient procedures
In addition, for companies that exceed this amount, the agreement provides for a simplification of administrative processes. Authorisation procedures will be streamlined, as will data collection and the calculation of emissions incorporated into products.
These improvements will reduce the cost and complexity of regulatory compliance, facilitating the integration of the MAFC into standard logistics and customs flows. They also provide greater clarity and legal certainty for operators, who until now have faced technically demanding and poorly standardised processes.
At Operinter, as experts in customs management and regulatory compliance, we will continue to report on each step forward in the implementation of the MAFC and support our clients as they adapt to this new environmental regulation. The ultimate goal is an efficient transition to more sustainable trade without affecting competitiveness.
